Thermo-osmotic gas supply not detected in Avicennia marina seedlings

Ethane was used as tracer gas to assess the likelihood of thermo-osmotically induced mass-flow in the aerenchyma of Avicennia marina seedlings without pneumatophores. Ethane movement was measured in darkness and with illumination at approximately 600 µ mol m^–2s^–1 provided to the leaves and stem, with the expectation that leaf warming under illumination would provide for thermo-osmotic flow. In some seedlings the flow increased with illumination, and in others it either decreased or remained unchanged. Overall, there was no statistically significant difference in the conductance to ethane between darkened illuminated plants, and the rates of ethane movement were consistent with an average diffusive conductance to oxygen down the stem of 0.22 × 10^–19m³ s^–1. it was concluded that there was no evidence for thermo-osmotically induced in this case.